


Myriad

by ThatWALKERKid



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Conspiracy, Multi, Mythology - Freeform, Post Season/Series 10, Science Fiction, Some domestic fluff, new characters - Freeform, no set place in timeline
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-14
Updated: 2019-11-21
Packaged: 2021-01-30 15:57:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 14,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21430855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatWALKERKid/pseuds/ThatWALKERKid
Summary: Life is not infinite... its continuation should be pursued with vigour and without boundaries. Sacrifices are expected and should be used as a driving force to achieve our central goal; the extension, improvement and eventual re- write of the human race.We are science.We are technology.We are intellect.We are Myriad.------------------------------------------------------------------------------------The darkness comes calling.
Relationships: Fox Mulder/Dana Scully
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11





	1. And the past keeps repeating

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first X-Files fic. It has been a long time coming and I can only hope that my interpretation of these amazing characters in this new story will do them justice and that all those who read will enjoy the journey. It fits loosely into the time line at a point after the first movie (fight the future) and the end of the original series but before the revival.. 
> 
> Feel free to let me know what you like and what you don't! Hit me up here or on twitter @theQueerwriter..
> 
> ALL SPELLING AND GRAMMATICAL ERRORS ARE MY OWN.. My fingers type faster than I notice the mistakes but I do try and limit them... So hopefully it’s not all everyone notices! :) 
> 
> Hope y'all enjoy reading as much as I have enjoyed beginning to create this story!

* * *

_“The fate of the world seems blinded by the inherent need of humanity to be disillusioned to the things around them. The cover ups… The phenomenon explained as anything other… faiths tested, pushed to the outer limits of everything I had wanted to believe my whole life. I gave the X-Files over ten years… a decade of being led to believe that what I was chasing was truth… but all it did was destroy the lives of the people I loved… it almost destroyed me._

_It’s been years. I’ve been dark, hiding away in my own freakish need to keep a hold of what little faith in the truth I had left. I’ve been trying to live a life, rebuild the life I had almost destroyed in my pursuits… I was given a second chance. But just like Scully has always said, this life just keeps pulling us back into chasing monsters in the dark and maybe we’re meant to be… But overtime we do this, I get lost and clouded by my need for the truth…_

_But what is the truth? Is it what we are told it is? Or is it what we choose to believe?..” **\- MULDER**_

**CHAPTER ONE:**

A sunflower seed shell skittered across the oak hard wood floor, landing next to similarly crunched on shells. If it wasn't for the jean clad leg next to them, anyone could have thought a bird sat up high on a perch snacking on the seeds but no… Fox Mulder lay claim to them; a tool to clear his mind, to help him run through the many theories that seemed to pupate in his mind.

It was a vice started long ago in his office, in the deepest, darkest depths of the FBI building he once called home, where he gave many years of his life and sacrificed many of the people in it; however unintentional. Now, while still a vice, Mulder crunched on those seeds as a way to remember and just because he did genuinely enjoy them. He sat on an old office chair, its back tilted to extremes as he stretched back, eyes closed, taking a moment that was just for him and his mind only; a throwback to his search for the truth, a secret liaison he wouldn’t dare share with the woman he knew had just walked through the door, eyebrows raised at the mess he'd made yet again, curiosity printed on her face as to where he had drifted off to.

_“Hey Scully..” _Not opening his eyes but a soft smirk pulling at the corners of his mouth.

Scully tried not to mimic the action and frown instead at her dismay about the seeds all over the floor.

_“Really Mulder?”_

A full smile blossomed on his face this time, his eyes still closed.

_“So you don't mind the pencils, its the seeds that get you going?”_

Scully’s brow crinkled and she slowly tilted her head to look up at the roof preparing to see a barrage of pencils stuck in the foam tile Mulder had put there, just like she had done a million times before. She chuckled when nothing confronted her and looked back down into Mulder’s gold flecked clear hazel eyes, that were now open and staring adoringly back at her. He moved his position on the chair so he was upright and could reel Scully in with gentle hands to her hips. Her shoe crunched onto the shells as if they were making the point for her. She stepped into him, arms snaking around his neck, hand trailing into his somewhat short hair, fingernails scratching lovingly at his scalp. He hummed at the touch and pulled her down onto his lap, arms encircling her into him.

_“I’ll clean them up I promise…. How was the hospital?”_

At his questions, Mulder could feel the weight on her shoulders and in her mind, sink into him. She rested her chin against his head, a sigh permeating through every bone in her body as she felt Mulder’s lips against her neck. Scully had gone to work at another hospital after their last stint with the FBI. She was a medical doctor after all and if she could do something it was save lives and take care of people that needed it and the cases Scully chose to work on definitely needed her.

_“It was fine. Just a long day; multiple surgeries. I think even my bones are tired…”_

He pulled himself out of her neck and kissed her as she looked down at him. Mulder relished there way a smile formed on her lips as they parted, one of her hands cupping his cheek, a thumb caressing the slight stubble there.

_“And how was your day?”_

Scully already knew the partially scripted answer she’d get but wanted to know anyway, wanting to remain in his arms for just a few more minutes.

_“It was good! I finally got around to fixing the door jam of the back door; its now trip free and closes without a herculean battle… and the grass out back won’t swallow you whole like the children of the corn anymore.”_

Mulder preened at his achievements but noticed Scully looked a little confused and shocked.

_“You okay Scully?”_

She nodded, a smile pulling at her mouth.

_“Yes… that just wasn’t the answer I was expecting, but thank you for fixing the door and the grass out back.”_

Mulder kissed her again, breathing her in.

_“You were expecting the whole I trolled the internet for news articles, checked on some sources and cut clippings from the actual newspaper thing.”_

A bright, beaming smile hit her as she listened to his words.

_“Don’t worry Scully I did all that too… but figured I had some spare time and thought I’d get a jump on all the things this place needs doing to it.”_

She smirked at him and rose to her feet.

_“You’re starting to worry me Mulder. Doing domestic house work, gardening… anyone would think you are getting used to being normal… to living a normal life.”_

He feigned a frown and poked at her playfully.

_“That actually hurt Scully… me, normal? Normal is boring…”_

She chuckled as she made to leave the room and once again stood on the sunflower seed shells. She looked down at the file under her foot.

_“You’re right Mulder. You are far from boring… you are eclectic… like that aunt I used to have that would do an exorcism of the turkey every thanks giving, thinking it was demonic after that one time my mom did tur-duck-en.”_

She looked back at him, her eyes matching the sincere brightness of her smile towards him.

_“Now, its been a long day and I’m going to have a long hot shower and then fold myself into bed so I cant at least try and feel like I’m human again tomorrow.”_

With that she began to leave the room in search of her shower.

_“You know thats not funny Scully but I’m going to ignore your blatant attempt to mock me and our past and clean up these shells.”_

He got down off the chair and began cleaning up the shells. He was almost done when he heard the shower start up… he paused for a moment imaging Scully having stepped under the warm water of the shower, her shoulders immediately relaxing. His mind then began to wonder about other things. It took him a minute to realise that all he had to do was go to his bathroom and he’d be able to see all he'd wanted to see… he quickly finished cleaning up and went in search of a very naked Scully.

* * *

Mulder’s eyes snapped open. a slight gasp leaving his lips at the abrupt nature of his awakening. Scully shifted slightly beside him but settled quickly. He ran a hand overs weary face and looked at the clock on the bedside table; angry red letters screamed the agony of 3:27am back at him.

Swinging his legs off the bed as carefully as he could, so as not to wake Scully, throwing a look back at her sleeping form to make sure, he went off in search of water; a parched throat giving him a grievance he wanted to settle. H would normally just shuffle into the bathroom and take a drink from the tap there but Scully had requested he stop that; not so much because she didn’t like it but more so for the fact that she had listed all the different kinds of germs and bacteria that lay in wait on bathroom amenities and didn’t want Mulder to get sick. He could have argued that he had survived many infections from bacteria’s and toxins that could only be described as out of the world but he had just kissed her and agreed he would be less of a cave man and use the tap in the kitchen.

So he shuffled through their dark home, only clad in his briefs; he had agreed to be less of a cave man but didn’t care to have to put on pants for a glass of water in his own home. No one was going to see him anyway. Just as the thought crossed his mind, the swift flick of a shadow caught his eye; the motion drawing his attention to the window across the living room. His body without provocation drifted to the hall table draw, retrieving the gun he had hidden there.

His eyes roamed the area for any further signs of someone lurking around his home. He moved through the darkness with the skill of a big cat stalking its prey and was getting ready to pounce at his back door when a noise behind him grabbed his attention. Spinning around, weapon trained for the money shot, he caught sight of Scully, gun also in hand. She had come in search of him and probably noticed the draw of the hall table open. He put his finger to his lips and pointed back towards the door. She nodded and moved around him to stand behind the door. Grabbing the handle, she yanked the door open and Mulder leapt through it, tackling the figure he had seen as just a shadow moments ago. The pair struggled on the cold ground as Scully tried to keep her gun trained on the figure but the darkness shrouded the pair and she didn’t want to risk shooting Mulder.

Mulder held his own, even though the shadow had gotten a few good jabs at him, splitting his lip if the metallic taste on his tongue was anything to go by. It seemed like forever but mere moments had passed and Mulder subdued the individual, wrenching him to his feet and pressing him against the door jam he'd fixed just yesterday. Scully fumbled for the light switch and flicked is on, the bare bulb spluttering to life, swaying from the commotion below, gun still trained on the intruder. The harsh light bit at Mulder’s eyes and he knew what would be the next thing he'd get a jump on; changing that bulb to something more retina friendly. With Scully’s watchful eyes and gun trained on the now illuminated male, Mulder grabbed his discarded gun and ordered he turn around. 

The figure turned around, wide terrified eyes stared back at them from a very young face. The teenager raised his hands in front of him, looking from weapon to weapon being pointed at him. Scully frowned and lowered her gun slightly, dismayed at how young this man was; Mulder held firm in his position, the slightest of frowns the only thing giving away his surprise.

_“Ple… please don’t hurt me.”_

Mulder grabbed the front of the young man’ shirt in his hand pulling him forward slightly.

_“Who are you?_ His words were gruff and reminded Scully of the many off the book interrogations she had seen Mulder in.

Scully lowered her weapon completely down her side and stepped across the threshold to stand next to Mulder, a gentle hand on his shoulder.

_“Mulder… calm down..” _her tone was soft but firm. She needed him to keep his head. He shook his head and pulled on the shirt further.

_“No Scully, this kid comes sneaking around our house in the middle of the night… who sent you?”_

Scully could see all the old Mulder walls and suspicions going back up. She had to do something fast to stop him spiralling completely. She stepped into him, turning away from the terrified young man Mulder was currently roughly handling. Placing a hand on his chest, Scully tried to reason with him, so that they could actually find out what was going on.

_“Mulder I wanna know what he’s doing here just as much as you do but you actually have to give him a chance to explain… you know from experience that this doesn't work… please?”_

Scully could feel the heavy thud of Mulder’s heart beneath her fingers; it drew her in, almost spell like. Her touch and words must have also struck a cord, because she felt him lower his gun and shift backwards, away from the man. She sighed internally. She hadn't always been able to talk him down, but it had been years since they had been involved with that kind of life and he had grown accustomed to her words and trust in them. Scully turned back around and finally got a decent look at the young man before her…

_“Wait… I’ve seen you before..”_

The young man nodded nervously, his eyes flicking from Scully’s to Mulder’s, who looked like he wanted any excuse to raise his weapon once again.

_“I’ve been trying to find you Dr. Scully. I need your help.”_

Mulder frowned and looked towards Scully.

_“Scully?”_

She waved him off with her hand, trying to place where she had seen the young man before just now.

_“You’ve been at the hospital?” _It was a combination of a question and a realisation all at once.

The young an nodded again. His blue eyes searching for an understanding. _“Yes ma’am. I’ve been searching for you for a while and then finally tracked you down but couldn't get to you at the hospital.”_

Mulder shifted on his feet, the cold somewhat biting at his bare legs and chest, the briefs he was wearing the only fabric between him and the night air.

_“So you’ve been following her? You said you needed her help… why? Are you sick? There are millions of other doctors out there… why Scully?”_

The young man grimaced, pain crossing his features, almost doubling him over.

_“Because she’s the only one with the experience to help me. She’s the only one with what I need.”_

Scully was confused but she could see something was affecting this person in front of her and wanted to know why she could be the only one to help.

_“And what is it you need?”_

Without further words, he slowly lifted his shirt, scarred skin greeting them. Small hallows of flesh made what Scully could see of his stomach look like swiss cheese. Her eyes widened… they had seen this before.

_“Are those…?”_

The young man lowered his shirt and nodded tearfully. it was then Mulder made the decision. He swallowed thickly, licking his lips, he turned to Scully.

_“I think we should take his inside.”_

* * *

Mulder pulled on the white tee he had in his hands. He'd already pulled on a pair of jeans and it was now just his bare feet feeling any sort of chill in the air. He walked over to the table where Scully sat across from the stranger that they had ushered into their home. He was fairly certain he knew how the young man had gotten the marks his abdomen bore, but it was better to ask the source than to conclude yourself into a falsehood. 

_“What’s your name?” _Cataloguing Mulder swung into action.

_“Brian Jefferson…”_

Such a normal name for a young man Scully thought, but anything but normal had happened here. 

_“Okay Brian, now I want you to tell me how you knew to come here and what it is that Scully supposedly has that you need.”_

Mulder sat down beside Scully who was still in her night gown, hair pulled back into a pony tail, gun strategically not far from her grasp and awaited the answer.

_“I just knew to come here. Like my mind and body knew the way, like I was being led here.”_

His voice was shaky and sweat had begun to bead on his forehead. Scully studied him. trying to determine what was happening to him. 

_“Is that how you found me at the hospital?… you just knew?”_ The words seemed bitter in her mouth like burnt coffee and she spat them out at him. 

_“No. I was directed to you by a person you used to know… from your days in the FBI. I promised I’d keep their identity a secret as they sacrificed a lot to… to… to.”_

Brian began to struggle for breath, his eyes rolling into the back of his head, blood trickling from his nose as he began to convulse. Scully was on her feet in seconds and around the table trying to help him.

_“Mulder help me get him on the ground.”_

Mulder sprang up and gently laid Brian on the ground, away from the table and anything he could thrash into. Scully scooted over to a draw and pulled out a pen light, shining it into Brian’s eyes.

_“What’s happening Scully? Some sort of seizure?”_

It certainly looked that way but she had come to know that not everything looked like it seemed; think horses not zebras. After a few moments, Brian’s body stopped thrashing against the kitchen floor and he stilled; looking like he was dead. She checked for a pulse… nothing, not one soft beat.

_‘Damn it! He’s not breathing… Mulder go into the closet and get my med kit.”_

She began chest compressions, trying to stimulate the heart back to life. She was small in stature but strong arms and the knowledge she had gave her an edge. Mulder was back in seconds, her once daily used medical bag in hand. She stopped compressions for a moment, checking once again for any sign of life; still nothing. Throwing the case open Scully dug around in it, pulling out small vial and a large gauge needle.

_“Scully?”_

Drawing back the top of the needle, Scully checked that the liquid was ready to be injected. Lifting his shirt, Scully began to measure with her fingers where she should inject it.

_“I’m going to give him some adrenaline to try and get his heart started again… if this works, its going to be very painful and he’s going to want to jump up… so I’m gonna need you to hold him down.”_

Mulder knelt down by Brian’s head, placing his hands on his shoulders in preparation for what was coming. He watched as Scully drove that needle into Brian’s chest and pushed down the plunger. Within seconds, and with a deep draw of breath, Brian struggled against Mulder’s grip but soon settled as the pain Scully had just inflicted trying to save his life, ripped through his chest… he coughed trying to calm himself, trying to squeeze air back into his lungs.

Brian’s bloodshot eyes searched the faces above him, chest heaving with breath.

_“Brian can you hear me?”_

Scully passed her pen light over his eyes; pupils dilating but sluggishly. A soft murmur fell from his lips…

_“Ouch.”_

A smile grew on Mulder’s lips and he patted Brian’s shoulder. Scully sighed and almost collapsed backwards into a siting position. She had to deal with these situations at the hospital from time to time but it had been a while since she had to bring a young man back to life on her kitchen floor with little more than a drug store first aid kit.

The trio remained on the floor for a few minutes, letting the air around them settle its electric like charge.

_“Just like old times huh doc?”_

Mulder chuckled, resting his head back against the cupboard draw, casting a watchful eye on both Scully and Brian. Scully felt a warmth spread through her chest. While it wasn't the sort of thing she’d have wanted to do so early in the morning nor in such a MacGyver like fashion, she had felt the rush as she waited for Brian to react to the adrenaline. She shifted and lent over Brian, once more putting the back of her hand to his forehead. He had a temperature and she wasn't sure what damage had already been done or what else this young man hand been subjected to.

_“Mulder we gotta get him to a hospital. If that was a seizure it could have cut off oxygen to the brain and caused damage. I could have broken some ribs with my compressions or the injection could have been wrong… He’s got a burning fever and without further examination and scans I can’t tell what else is wrong with him.”_

Mulder shifted forward and supported Brian by the underarms and lifted him up slowly.

_“Help me get him off the floor Scully. Then we can decide what to do.”_

Scully knew what that meant for Mulder. He was buying time to come up with all the reasons why they shouldn't get Brian to the hospital… all the reasons she herself had already played through her mind. She knew that the darkness was never fully gone and at any moment it would reclaim them. Mulder was always just on the edge, ready to step in and search it for the one thing that was always so clouded; the truth. They had been back and forth many times, Scully with her science and Mulder with his human need to understand and believe things that seem outrageous and impossible to the critical mind. Scully had dismissed many of Mulder’s theories over the years but had come to arrive at an understanding of why things were so important for him and why he often couldn't let them go.

They led Brian to their never used guest bedroom. His shirt was soaked through so Scully helped him removed it and to lay down; placing a wet washcloth to his forehead. She stood to join Mulder at the edge of the room as Brian’s breathing fell into a steady rhythm.

_“Something horrific happened to him; there’s no doubt about that but I can’t justify not helping him.”_

Mulder shook his head and drew Scully into his arms, her head finding his heart.

_“Scully you already helped him. He’s alive because of you. Not many people I know would have the courage or the know how to do any of that.”_

She rested against him, the thump of his heart helping to repair fried nerves.

_“Mulder, I’m a doctor… that’s the reason he's alive but I think more so because he came to us for help.”_

Mulder knew what she was going to say next.

_“I know that right now your doctor self is screaming at me on the inside but I need you to tap into your former FBI self now Scully… think about it. He came here with the help of someone we knew from the FBI, that means something is coming and they want us to either help or we have become a problem for them somehow… they could be trying to flush us out.”_

Scully groaned and shook her head, moving out of his arms and further into the darkened room. 

_“Damn it Mulder! No one wants to flush us out. We’ve been out of their hair for years, I don't think they want to stir up old wars for no reason. This boy needs medical attention and he came here for my help, I can’t ignore that. If you really want to know what he knows, you will help me get him to a hospital.”_

Mulder knew that before anything, before being an FBI agent, before being his partner, Scully was a medical doctor. She took an oath to save lives, and while he had often in the past tried to get her to circumvent that oath for his gain, he knew that in this instance, it would do more harm to their relationship and the developing situation if he tried that now. He took a deep breath… and he knew. Scully was right, she always was; however infuriatingly.

_“Shit… okay.” _He softened just looking at her. _“I’ll get the car.”_

Before either of them could more, Brian sat up.

_“No, please we can’t go to the hospital. I can’t risk them finding me or you Dr. Scully… I’m okay… I’ve just been disconnected from the others for too long… it will pass.”_

Scully frowned and moved over to the bed, Mulder following behind her.

_“What do you mean disconnected from the others?”_

Brian took a deep breath preparing to tell the only people on the planet who just might understand and be able to help. He turned slightly on the bed to reveal the back of his neck. Scully couldn't contain the gasp that slipped from her lips as she saw the device attached to Brian’s neck. Metallic tendrils infiltrated his skin, running deep into the base of his skull, connected to a device that looked like a port for a computer or audio cable.

Scully reached out to Brian’s neck with a tentative hand. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Mulder shift to look out of the window then move closer to where Brian sat to get a better look.

_“I’m apart of this group that is used to test physiological and mental advancement with the help of technology. We are connected to a big computer system, and are subjected to tests of different types; mathematical, problem solving, decision making and non verbal communication.”_

Mulder stepped even closer to get a better look at the device on Brian’s neck. He had heard of such experiments but had never been able to validate anything and now here in front of him living proof.

_“Telepathic communication?” _Both a statement of realisation and a question of proof.

Scully probed the device with her finger, careful not to startle him.

_“This device looks like its been in your neck for a long time. Scar tissue around these tendrils and the device itself says a substantial amount of time had passed since it was implanted… years even.”_

Brian nodded slightly and turned back to face the pair. His eyes rimmed red with tears he didn’t want to shed.

_“I was twelve when they came but the device wasn't put in till I was thirteen or so. You lose track of time there.”_

Scully couldn't wrap her head around why a child would be taken from his parents, couldn't think of the logic behind it but knew Mulder was right in the thick of his feelings about children being taken or missing from their families as well; his own sister Samantha had been a victim of such horrors and it was something Mulder fought with everyday. She glanced at him, his face a picture of alertness mixed with what Scully could only imagine was anger and grief.

_“Why you…? Why did they take you?”  
_

Mulder had wanted to know what made this Brian so special and why suddenly it was imperative that he find Scully? If there was one thing Mulder knew, it was that no matter what it cost he would lay down his life for her… he would protect her with everything he had left.

Brian’s shoulders slumped and he shook his head. _“I wish I knew. All I know is that they say the way my brain is wired is perfect for conduction.”_

Scully could feel Mulder bristling, feel his need for answers raising his guard. She grabbed for his hand, to try and ground him. They didnt know all the answers but going after the one person who could tell them wouldn’t get them very far. She felt his warm hand slip into hers, his fingers fitting into the spaces of her own, like they were meant to be there; and Scully did believe that they were meant to be there… for all the things they'd been through, there was no one else that she could ever see fitting the spaces between her fingers, or in her heart and mind. 

_“You mean like electrical conduction?”_

It was then it clicked for Scully.

_“I think he means brain function… he must have a condition that has wired his brain for increased electrical activity which in turn increases its ability to process data and make decisions. And if there are a number of individuals with this wiring, connected together, it would be like one giant super computer… how many are there in the group?”_

Brian lay back against the pillows on the bed, a sudden wave of nausea taking over him; a shiver spiralling through his bones. Scully pulled a blanket from the end of the bed and placed it across him.

_“There are… eight of us. There used to be ten but they said eight was the optimal number for maintaining the connection and terminated two from the group.”_

Mulder scratched at his chin, stubble biting into his fingertips.

_“Okay, so you’re apart of some group that’s connected to each other… but if you’re so smart why do you need Scully? Why can’t you figure it out?”_

Brian began to shiver violently, pulling the blanket up around him tighter… Scully knew that sign.

_“The adrenaline is wearing off, your shivering is just a side affect of the shock your system is in. Mulder he needs to rest. We can work this out later.”_

She ushered Mulder out of the room before he could protest. She wanted answers too but Brian’s system needed time to recover. It could at least wait till morning. She pulled the door to, and followed Mulder into the kitchen. He grabbed a glass from the cabinet in front of him and filled it with water from the tap; his forgotten thirst having returned. Scully leant up against the table facing hit at the sink; fingers absentmindedly playing with the tiny cross around her neck.

Mulder put the glass into the sink and turned back towards Scully. He stepped forward into her, replacing her fingers with his own on the cross.

_“I tried to give this back to your mom when you went missing. I found it in the trunk of Duane Barry’s car. She told me to keep it, so I could give it back to you when I found you. You know me Scully, I’m not a praying man but… I hoped that your spirit was in this tiny cross that mw having it would give you the strength to hold on till I found you because it was my fault you were taken. I wasn't good enough to stop him. I said to myself that I would protect you with everything I had if god gave you back to me and right now, I’m not getting a good feeling about why that young man is here and what he needs you for… I wont let anything happen to you again Scully.”_

Scully cupped his cheek with one hand and covered his own around the cross with hers. The things he spoke of were practically a life time ago but still sat very real in his mind and chest; it pained her to know that he'd been carrying around the weight of those events for years.

_“Mulder…”_

He kissed her softly, their hands still between them over her heart. She revelled in the warmth of his lips and the gentle wisps of air on her face as he breathed her in. It was short but Scully knew what it meant. She’d always known; it had been something they both had feared but after their son was born, they both needed more, to hold onto each together.

_“We will figure this out Mulder, together, like we always do but right now we could all use sone rest.”_

She turned and with Mulder’s hand in her own, led them to their bedroom. Mulder waited until Scully had slipped back under the covers before he discarded his shirt and encased her in his arms. He wasn’t going to be sleeping, but after the day Scully had yesterday, he wanted her to be able to get as much sleep as she could. As he felt her breathing even out, he thought back to hotel rooms and individual apartments before they had given in to their feelings, before admitting that they’d had something real, that they'd spooned like this. Mulder hadn't ever minded. He would always hold her, always make sure she knew that she was safe and protected, even though he knew she could protect herself.

His mind continued to drift through so many memories they had shared and created together.

The first time they had met.

The first time Scully had saved his life, and certainly wasn't the last time.

The first time she had kissed his forehead, her fingers in his hair at his neck.

Everything they'd been through together made them stronger; but Mulder knew it had also taken it toll. He knew Scully wanted kids and a normal life and he was trying like hell to give her these things, but there was a voice in his mind that would always tell him that he was not worthy of her, that she deserved better… and Mulder knew she did.

He closed his eyes for a second, breathing in the lingering smell of Scully’s body wash; vanilla with a touch of honey. It over ran his senses and for a split second he felt like he was falling. He opened his eyes with a start, his heart hammering in his chest until it wasn’t; until it stopped dead with fear and panic and pain. He lay alone in bed, the darkness echoing around him. He sprang from the bed, racing to the guest room. He pushed the door open, the light from the hall illuminating the nothingness beyond.

_“Scully?”_

Mulder ran from room to room and out onto the front porch. Darkness greeting him.

_“SCULLY!!”_

Silence beat back at him. All the fears he'd ever had in the world crept into his mind, into his soul, almost stopping him dead. This was the worst of them all, one he'd never had wanted to repeat ever again.

Scully was gone…


	2. A G- man and A Scientist

* * *

**Chapter two: A G- Man and A Scientist**

Scully had drifted off to sleep wrapped in Mulder’s arms; she felt safe and protected just like always. She didn’t know how long she’d been asleep for or when Mulder had rolled away from her to lay on his back, his comfortable position, but she knew the feeling of the metal barrel of a gun being pressed to her forehead when she felt one.

She’d opened her eyes to stare right at her assailant, or should she say assailants; fight or flight response trying to work out what to do next. She didn’t get the chance to decide as a hypodermic needle punctured her neck and the edges of the room began to blur. She knew she’d been sedated. And now she awoke in complete darkness, muffled voices and the thrum of rubber on the road coated her ears. She wasn’t blind folded but her wrists were cable tied together, and material bit at her cheeks; she was gagged.

Great.

Gagged and in the trunk of a car; most likely her own.

This was not how she had expected or planned for her day to go. She was supposed to get up and make Mulder breakfast, then with very little coaxing, usher him into the shower with her, before she had to leave for work at the hospital. Scully felt an annoyance and anger rising within her. Mulder had been right all along about what was going to happen but under her instruction and guidance had not listened to his gut. She felt a pang of guilt hit her as well. She hadn’t realised how much he had changed for her and how willing he was to compromise his values and beliefs to make her happy; to see her have a normal life.

Well this was damn far from normal and Scully wanted answers… She began to kick her feet out hitting the lining of the car; the thud reverberating through the floor she was laying on. Although she was small in stature, the trunk of the car wasn't much bigger and it left little to be desired about being buried alive. Obviously this wasn't her first trunk ride but she had a feeling that where ever she was going, she wouldn’t make the trunk ride back, not alive at least. She continued kicking until she felt the vehicle slow to a stop and the doors open. Taking a few deep breaths in threw her nose, she braced herself to do whatever she could to escape; how ever little that was, at least she would know that she had tried.

Hearing the latch thunk to her side, Scully clasped her hands together and brought them to her chest, ready to strike out at the first opportunity she got. She shifted slightly and felt the chain around her neck move as well; she gripped the delicate chain and pulled, releasing it from its shackled state and dropped it beside her on the far side of the trunk. She knew Mulder would be looking for her and the cross would tell him she had been there. Light pierced her vision as the trunk opened fully and she blinked furiously trying to maintain her composure. As her eyes adjusted she realised that the light was artificial in nature, a fluorescent bulb above the vehicle beating down behind the three individuals before her.

She thrust her clasped hands forward trying to strike anything in range, muffled screams doing little but making her throat hoarse. Strong hands grasped her biceps and pulled her from the trunk onto her feet. She continued to struggle until the piercing pain of a hand held taser gnawed at her side. Dropping to her knees, everything screamed in pain and the world spun uncontrollably, air squeezing violently from her lungs before her vision met darkness again, this time in the form of a black hood.

Her body met the ground as the hands holding onto her loosened their grip. The coolness of the concrete on her skin a welcome reprieve from the fire she felt all over. She was just doing her best to keep breathing but as she lay there she could hear their muffled voices arguing with each other.

_“You said she wouldn’t be harmed.” _The voice was small but familiar and Scully vaguely recognised it as Brian’s.

_“I will do what I have to for the group. I’ve always taken care of you haven’t I? Made sure you were safe and protected?… you did good Brian. You found us the key… this will change everything.”_

Scully didn’t like the sound of any of that… the new voices vying for her like some sort of prize. What the hell was she the key to? She forced herself to try and crawl in any sort of direction that seemed to be away from the danger she felt breathing down her neck but didn’t get very far before she was once again hit with the taser; this time she shut down completely, her body giving into the searing pain and confusion of electricity exciting her brain into overload.

* * *

The bell at the top of the door clanged as it swung open begging entry to those on the outside. The diner was small but inconspicuous enough that Mulder had used it for the meeting he was about to make. His eyes flicked around the dining area, barely a soul to call alive save for the young woman behind the counter and the burly man he caught a glimpse of in the kitchen as he strode to the very end of a row of booths and slide into it; red faux leather groaning a little as his jeans made their acquaintance with it. Sunlight filtered through the window over looking the row of booths and on any other day Mulder might have considered it to be beautiful and might have even dragged Scully there for a bite to eat after her shift at the hospital.

The waitress, custom printed from any diner in the midwest, short shorts, white button down blouse tucked into them, apron wrapped around her waist, strolled over to him, pad and pen at the ready to take his order. He didn’t want anything but decided to get a cup of coffee to seem more in place than if he had gone without. She had smiled at him and retreated back behind the counter to retrieve his beverage.

_“You sure there ain’t nothing else I can get you?”_

Mulder gripped the white ceramic in both hands, it’s warmth overshadowing the dread he felt, even if for just a moment.

_“No thanks… coffee is just fine.”_

She smiled again and told him she would be right over to him if he needed anything. He eyed her until she was back behind the counter, busy with other work she had to complete. Mulder wasn’t aware of how much time had passed and barely registered the bell clanging on the front door, when a familiar figure slid onto the seat opposite from him in the booth.

_“Mulder?” _The smooth tones of Walter Skinner lured him out of the quiet state in which he sat.

_“Someone took her Skinner.”_

The words reverberated through him. He already knew she was missing, Mulder had told him when he’d got into contact earlier that morning but hearing it come straight from Mulder in person hit him a little harder.

_“We will get her back Mulder… I promise.”_

Mulder cleared his throat as the waitress that had served him earlier stepped up to them once more, refilling his cup and offering Skinner some as well. They nodded and thanked her but didn’t require anything else at this time. As soon a she was out of ear shot the pair looked at each other, Skinner pulling a folder out of his bag.

_“Here’s everything I could find on Brian Jefferson and I’ve got people tracking Scully’s car.”_

Mulder took the folder and began to look through it, eyeing the photo of the boy that had sat in his kitchen only hours ago and had now taken the one person that meant anything to him. Skinner let him process the information but couldn't help but feel like he was in part responsible for what Mulder was now going through; again.

_“Mulder I…”_

Mulder looked up at him, round eyes looking into him… for hope, for guidance, for a reason to all that was happening… and unfortunately Skinner could give him only one of those; the reason. He looked out the window for a moment, trying to steel his resolve, to drag himself out of his own selfish pity to tell his friend that he was the reason Brian had found them in the first place.

_“Bout two weeks ago, I was contacted by someone who claimed to know things about the two of you and that he needed your help to save a group of people being held by a collection of scientists that go by the name of Myriad. I didn’t think it was credible at first because Myriad hadn't been around for a good 2 decades but I set up a meeting… at the meeting Brian told me about Myriad and how he came to know both you and Scully.”_

Mulder frowned and shook his head.

_“Neither Scully nor I had ever seen that boy before until I caught him trying to break into my house at 3am this morning.”_

Skinner fished around in his jacket pocket and produced a business card, handing it to Mulder.

_“He gave me this. Said to me that his mother had given it to him in case anything ever happened to him… that you’d be the person to help him.”_

Mulder turned the card over in his fingers; his own name boldly printed back at him. It’s edges were worn and it appeared faded; one of his early cards.

_“He doesn’t need my help. He needs Scully… at least that’s what he told us. Scully was the only one that could help him. What does his mother have to do with this? Why does she have my card?”_

Skinner sunk back into the leather of the booth, hands clasped in front of him.

_“Does the name Colleen Jefferson mean anything to you?”_

Mulder scanned his memory; his never forgetting, theory, fact filled memory. He stared at the card.

_“She was an X-File… both her and her mother were. Her mother claimed to have been abducted in her early twenties. I was alerted to the case because her daughter had gone missing under unexplainable circumstances and the locals didn’t wanna touch it. During the course of my investigation, the daughter was returned with all the hallmarks of an abductee but like all my other work, I was told to back off and that because the daughter had turned up, it was no longer an FBI case. I created an X-File on them and gave the mother my card and told her to call me if anything else happened… I never got a call.”_

Mulder had always wondered what became of the people he never heard from again. Had they been silenced? Had they been run out of the places they had once lived? Had they been abducted again? Mulder would never know. The X-Files would open and close and his pursuit of the truth and his nature of wanting to believe in more than, would be disparaged and tested. He’d be stripped of his status and branded a criminal by the very government he had sworn his service to. But this was about Scully; this case had been just before she’d been sent to sedate him with science and try to debunk his work.

_“So this is about alien abduction? But why take Scully?”_

Mulder sipped his coffee, letting the warm liquid settle on his tongue.

_“I don’t know. She wasn’t aware of this case. It was just before she began to work with me on the X-Files. It was a small blip on my radar. Other cases with more and more links to what I was searching for came along. I’d filed it to the back of the draw and my mind. Brian said that someone we knew from back in the day had helped him but he was reluctant to tell us who… which begs the reason why you’re giving up this information so easily? Wouldn’t this be putting your cushy directors job in jeopardy?”_

Mulder’s tone screamed anger and hurt and everything in between and Skinner knew he had the right to all those feelings but bristled nonetheless.

_“I don’t care about any of that, you should know that Mulder. We’ve known each other too damn long for you to think anything else.”_

Mulder shook his head and lent forward across the table.

_“You cared so much that you put mine and Scully’s life in danger by helping this kid find us. We were fine by ourselves; being normal, having normal lives. Scully deserved at least that and now what? The very thing she’d always tried to get away from has her god knows where, for god knows what. So save me your speeches… you can alleviate your guilt later, after we get Scully back.”_

Like the universe had heard Mulder’s words, Skinner’s phone began to vibrate on the table. Skinner picked it up, scanning its screen.

_“Well we might have a place to start looking. We tracked Scully’s car. It’s currently parked in an above ground car park. Internal timer says it hasn't moved for over a hour. But before we go off and do this, I need you to keep your head Mulder. She needs you to stay in control. I care about her too but going in all guns blazing won’t bring her back safely. We gotta do this right.”_

Mulder didn’t understand the notion of caring for Scully. He **loved **her… had always loved her. From the very beginning she had made him whole; been his constant. Sure it had gotten them into danger more times than not but every single thing had been worth it, to have the life they now shared with each other. Mulder didn’t care for Skinner’s platitudes and by the book bullshit. He was going to do what ever it took to get Scully back… even if that meant all guns blazing.

* * *

His footsteps echoed around the parking structure but Mulder didnt care, his only mission was finding Scully’s car. They’d been directed through by the parking attendant who conveniently hadn’t seen anything and now it was in eye shot; a black Lexus Gs. Mulder remembered when he had helped Scully pick the car out. She was worried that it made her look pretentious but he had said that she was a successful doctor, helping people and she deserved to drive something nice. She had fallen in love with it as soon as she’d slipped into the leather seat behind the wheel; much to Mulder’s delight of course.

Now it looked off and made his stomach flip flop, cordoned off by police tape, illuminated in harsh fluorescent light from above and every angle as a crime scene tech took pictures of it. His pace slowed a little, his chest heaving with a heavy breath. Skinner followed suit and walked with him. As they reached the car, Mulder didn’t say anything to anyone and Skinner just waved them off, trying to give Mulder his necessary space. He stood behind the vehicle, more memories flashing in his mind; of how he’d sat her on the trunk and they'd watched some fireworks on a trip they'd taken, of how he had almost asked her to marry him as rain and poured down onto its windows and glossy paneling.

_“Pop the trunk.”_

His voice bounced back at him through deathly silence; no one moving a muscle. Skinner frowned at their reluctance to move.

_“You heard the man, open the trunk.”_

A tech reached inside the car and pulled the lever to open the trunk. It clicked open with ease and Mulder reached down to pull on a pair of gloves from the kit at his feet. He braced his hand on the curve of the lid and lifted it slowly. As it came to a stop at the top of its ark, Mulder let out a breath he hadn’t realised he’d been holding in. The black carpet that lined the trunk gave witness to Scully having been inside it; strands of hair in shades of autumn straggled together. He lent into it and reaching back a little further, his fingers rolling over a thin metal that he recognised instantly; he’d had it in his hands only hours ago.

Mulder held the cross and its broken chain tightly in his hand. He knew that Scully had left it there to tell him she had indeed been there. But they’d been here before; done this before. His mind flashed back to long ago to the first time he had found this exact cross in the trunk of a car; Scully had been kidnapped by Duane Barry and Mulder had found his car at the summit of Skyland Mountain in Virginia; the little cross and chain waiting for him there too.

Skinner eyed him curiously, unsure wha his next steps were going to be.

_“Mulder?”_

Stepping up to him, Skinner tried to gauge what was going on in Mulder’s mind. He obviously knew that he was struggling and angry and drowning in the fear of losing one of the only people that ever say anything good inside of him; of losing the one person who made him see that life was more than the darkness. Mulder eyed the chain as he let it dangle from his fingers, the tiny cross spinning back and forth.

_“Her mom gave her this for her fifteenth birthday. I could never understand why Scully could have faith but not see the validity of the work we were doing… and then she got taken by Duane Barry and I found this in his trunk much like I did in this one just now; everything changed. I realised that her faith and my wanting to believe ran parallel to each other. Two sides of the same coin; both equally important in their own right. This tiny cross is a symbol of hope… of strength, of want and need. Scully left this behind as a show of faith in me that I will find her… and I want to believe that I can… I want to believe that I will get the chance to give this back to her yet again. But its been hours now since this car was left here. There are no other signs of Scully anywhere or any indication as to where they might have taken her.”_

Then as if from Mulder’s lips to gods ears, a tech walked up to them.

_“Sir, we’ve found a few things you should see.”_

Mulder was a hundred percent sure that the tech was addressing Skinner and had little or no regard for his presence at all but bounded after them as they walked away toward the stairwell door. Another tech greeted them and handed evidence bags to Skinner.

_“We found this taser and this piece of cloth on a landing in the stairwell.”_

Skinner breathed deep and silently dismissed the techs, he turned back to Mulder. Mulder didn’t need to hear what Skinner thought. He already knew what the items meant. 

_“She was bound and gagged… and kept in line with that.”_

Mulder gestured toward the clear bag containing the taser. He fought his emotions, trying to keep them inside; he knew if he broke down now it wouldn’t help things and he needed to be strong for Scully.

_“And knowing Scully, she would have given them hell.”_

Skinner smirked slightly knowing Mulder was right. Scully would have been the biggest pain in the ass for them… but he also knew that it wouldn’t help her for long and it would end up getting her into deep trouble.

_“We will find her Mulder… now I’m going to make sure everything they find here is put on an urgent track priority one.”_

Mulder nodded, a hand wiping down his weary face.

_“I’d like to come back… to the FBI… I need to do something and I don’t have anything to go on… I need a starting point… and the only way I know how to help Scully right now is by investigating. By looking for the truth.”_

Skinner felt for Mulder, he really did but things weren’t like they were before.

_“Mulder… a lot has happened since your time at the bureau… it’s not like it was before… it’s not just forgive and forget.”_

Mulder frowned. Was Skinner serious right now?

_“Forgive and forget? They should be the ones asking for my forgiveness. I gave so much of my life to the FBI; blocked at every turn, labelled as crazy and filed away in the darkest depths of bureaucracy… Spooky Mulder… with his fascination of little green men. I’m not standing in front of you as that hopeful, hedonistic agent. I’m standing here as a person who’s on the verge of losing something he never thought he’d get to have, of losing the only person who ever gave me a chance even though everyone warned her I’d drag her into obscurity. If Scully meant anything to you at all, I really need you to drop the director bullshit and let me do what I do best to find her… Please?”_

Skinner knew the situation they were in really began with him and it hit him that his attachment to bureaucracy held no station here. This was important and he did know that Mulder was owed a lot for everything that he had gone through at the FBI, some of which he was personally responsible… he sighed, his shoulders slumping in recognition of his fault in having tried to stop Mulder at all.

_“Come on…”_

* * *

The soft beep from a heart rate monitor pierced the thick silence of the room; the only other sound, the click of a pen, and it’s nib scratching at paper as someone took notes. That was until the door flew open and a group of scrub clad doctors and lab coat adorned scientists invaded the space. 

_“She’s been given a sedative... apparently she gave the group a particularly hard time as they brought her in.”_

Brian’s eyes looked on as the doctors and scientists spread out around the room, waiting for their turn to prod and poke the unconscious Dana Scully. His face was bruised and his shoulders hurt from being held back as a few of the others beat him; a punishment for losing focus and disobeying Dr. Marcus. He hadn’t been allowed to return to the dorm with the others, instead being chained to the wall in the same room that they put Dr. Scully, so that he could bare witness to the cause they so adamantly chased after. He didn’t know exactly what they needed Scully for but Brian had figured out that she was special... that she, and Mr. Mulder could have helped him... helped him escape all this and return to his mom. He knew the link between them was strong but he’d fought so hard to stop the others from finding them.. but after he’d fallen asleep, his guard must have dropped and they tracked him to the house.

_“What are you going to do with her?”_

The words had formed and left his lips without so much as his permission but he held the strength he’d said them with close. The muttering in the room quietened and Dr. Alton Marcus turned to face him. Even as a kid not much scared Brian but the day he’d met Dr. Marcus something had shifted inside of him; a deathly cold gripped him every time he saw him. Brian knew that he was no ordinary doctor and had struggled to see how he’d managed to become one in the first place.

He didn’t hold stock in peoples appearances, thought it vulgar and demeaning to suggest a persons character from how they looked, but Dr. Marcus could have filled the role of the villain in any James Bond or horror movie that had ever been made without even saying a word; A scar jutted through his left cheek and across his upper lip and his left eye was a milky white of blindness, where the other spoke of icy blues. Brian and the others had dared not look him directly in the eyes at any point, instead finding a spot just off in the distance to keep there eyes occupied.

_“She is the key is she not?”_

His voice bit at the space between them, a soft, almost undetectable Russian accent accompanying it and Brian dared not answer back as all the other eyes in the room preyed upon him. 

_“If she is indeed the key, then she will unlock all that we have been searching for. She will help us discover our true potential and she will sacrifice her being to scientific discovery... and you will be at the forefront Brian... this is all possible because of you.”_

Brian felt a swell of bile rise to the back of his throat at Dr. Marcus’s words. He knew it was his fault they were here, that didn’t mean he was proud of it; in fact it was the opposite. A hatred of sorts burned in his brain for this man’s complete lack of respect for the human existence; his only goal the advancement of science and the integration of human beings into it. 

_“Isn’t what we’ve done enough? Why does she have to die?”_

Dr. Marcus shifted towards him, crouching down so that he was eye to eye with the chained up Brian. A deep sneer etched its way onto his lips and he almost gnashed his teeth at Brian like a rabid dog asserting itself at the top of power. 

_“My dear boy, who said anything about death?... She will be the bringer of new life. The vessel from which new, intelligent life will be delivered.”_

Brian frowned and pull at the chain on the wall, Dr. Marcus just out of reach. He growled at the man. 

_“Oooh That’s the most fire I’ve seen from you since you got here. Grab hold of that Brian, because you’re going to need it for what’s coming.”_

He began to laugh as he stood and went back over to the bed where Dr. Scully lay. 

_“Now let’s get this started shall we?”_

Hot tears tracked their way down Brian’s cheeks as his hands gripped the chain at its placement on the wall. He would hold onto the fire alright. This was not over, he did not want to die in this place and just as much did not want Dr. Scully to either. He would try and get them out of here even if that meant he had to play along in the mean time; he just had to wait for the right moment. Brian could do little but watch as they wheeled Dr. Scully out of the room; watch on as each individual that had entered follow her. Dr. Marcus turned back to him, as he held the door open for the procession of people. 

_“You’re special Brian.. and I hope that before too long you will see just how true that is. What we are doing here is revolutionary, and you need to decide which part you are going to play; decide what side you are on.”_

Brian looked him in the eyes for the very first time, a steely resolve settling into his soul. He relaxed against the wall, letting go of the chains that bound him and just as Dr. Marcus was about to leave, he seized his moment. 

Dr. Marcus lent against the door, his eyes burning back into Brian’s, trying to gauge what his motives were. _“We shall see.... in time.”_

* * *

The door swung open with as much ease as it always had; no protesting groan or defiant locks hindered entrance here. Light from the hallway flooded the space, illuminating the dust particles that danced in the air. 

Stepping across the threshold Mulder ambled over to the partially visible desk and flicked on the lamp there. It’s bulb gave a bit more fight than the door had, flickering momentarily as it’s filament warmed enough to sustain the current coursing through it. Structurally it looked like it always had, small but functional. His desk sat where it he’d left it, albeit it not purposefully. The last time he was in this office, he’d left without knowing that it would be his last time there. None of the items that used to adorn the walls were there, Scully having packed his things up after it was all said and done. 

The filling cabinets that held his life’s work sat under plastic sheets; ghostly figures against one wall. He doubted that the majority of the work still existed but pushed any thoughts of the past out of his mind as that wasn’t his business here. He sat down at the desk, a new computer sat pride of place where his old one had been, its slim screen and non existent tower a sign of progress. His eyes roamed the walls for a few moments, flashes of what used to be printing against his irises along the way; the news paper clippings, crime scene photos and UFO sightings echoed his career back at him. His gaze drifted to the tile above him, small indents the only reminder that he’d been there at all; a common place that all his pencils would usually be found. 

A gentle knock at the door drew his attention out of what used to be and back into what was the now. The figure walked into the room, hand jutting out towards him across the desk. 

_“Agent Mulder? Axel Barrs ... Special Agent Axel Barrs.”_

Mulder really didn’t have it in him to care if he was honest but shook the man’s hand anyway. 

_“It’s just Mulder these days...Can I help you?”_

Axel withdrew his hand as Mulder let go of it.

_“I’ve been sent down to help with your investigation into Former Agent Dana Scully’s abduction.”_

Mulder frowned, bristling at the word abduction._ “Abduction... That’s very funny.. word get out already that “Spooky” Mulder was back in the building? Well you can go back to whoever sent you down here and tell them that I don’t have time to entertain their morbid curiosity about me. I may be a joke here but Scully being missing isn’t. Now if you don’t mind I’ve got work to do.”_

Axel didn’t move. 

He studied Mulder for a second, realising that he had missed an important element of his briefing by Director Skinner; this was personal for Agent Mulder. 

_“Sir, I had no intention of being insensitive to your previous work here or your connection to Agent Scully... You will find no school yard antics here. Director Skinner sent me to help you with whatever I can... and given the nature of this case I think I can be of some assistance.”_

Mulder sucked his teeth and lent back on his chair, eyeing Axel curiously. 

_“What makes you uniquely qualified to help with the nature of this case? Got your Skinner good boy points early?”_

Axel almost chuckled at that one but stood his ground. Director Skinner had warned him about Mulder’s ego and his inability to let anyone help him. 

_“Yeah... I crawled up Skinner’s ass first chance I got...” _Deadpan, not a hint of joke in sight.

Mulder chuckled slightly this time, eyes still very much on Axel.

_“And I am uniquely qualified for this. Before joining the FBI, I was a test subject for Myriad. When they got shut down, I was given a choice... help dissolve other factions like Myriad or be placed into a facility. I choose to join the FBI... from there I investigated cases with elements of their style and helped to bring down the remaining members.. or at least I thought I had... till today. So we can either play whose ego is bigger or we can get to finding Agent Scully.”_

Mulder relented when Axel handed him the file he held in his hand. He scanned the pages, field notes and photographs. 

_“What the hell is Myriad and why have I never heard of them?”_

Axel moved over the the filing cabinets and pulled off the plastic sheet. 

_“At the time your primary focus was on the X-files.. the unexplained. Myriad was considered explained as non native intellects conducting experiments for the advancement of scientific and technological human adaptation.”_

He opened a draw and searched through until he found the file he was looking for; walking back over to Mulder, placing it open on the desk before him. 

_“I reclassified them and had all the data and information transferred to the X-files after your last position here. The higher ups could label it what ever they wanted but I was there, in amongst it, there is nothing explainable bout what these people are trying to do.”_

Mulder was kind of all sorts of confused as he looked through all the information before him. 

_“Okay, so how does any of this help in finding where they’ve taken Scully... and what they need her for.”_

Axel nodded at Mulder’s question and walked around the desk, sitting in the chair opposite him.

_ “Right now I can only give you insights into what they might need her for. After I reclassified these cases to the X-files I went through and read all the files that have been kept here... all of them, including all the files on Agent Scully and yourself. Agent Scully’s DNA and biochemical make up had been changed by her experiences, both from her first disappearance off the back of the Duane Barry case, her time in Antarctica and after the birth of her son.”_

Mulder closed his eyes, searching his mind once more for all of the events he spoke of. They weren’t hard to find... everything they’d been through together had been carefully catalogued and filed away... but still remained as fresh as ever in his mind. He was confused as to how Axel had come to know about the birth of his son. 

_“Our son..”_ it was soft but firm, like he was stating a fact, clearing the air of any misgivings anyone had._ “And there was never any file on that.”_

Axel felt his throat tighten, swallowing thickly. As much as he knew about the X-Files, his knowledge of the two agents who had built them was few and far between.

_ “Director Skinner briefed me on a few important aspects of the X-Files before I took custody of them. As Agent Scully wasn’t wanted by the FBI at anytime, he mostly told me about her involvement; probably trying to keep any knowledge of your whereabouts quiet... not that I think you had any reason to be in hiding; you got a pretty raw deal. But things are different now, they’ve changed.”_

Mulder laughed fully this time, opening his eyes to look at Axel.

_“A raw deal? My whole career has been whittled down to some files and a dark room in the basement of this very building. I’m a joke... I’ve been wanted by my own government, tracked like a rabid dog looking to be put down. The FBI hasn’t changed. If it can’t be categorised, catalogued or put into a nice little box, this agency doesn’t want to know about it... and normally I’d care about that.. I’d fight and say that the truth is out there and if I were to stop looking then the bad guys would win, but again, NONE OF THAT TELLS ME WHERE THEY’VE TAKEN SCULLY OR WHAT FOR.”_

Mulder’s voice boomed around the small space. It didn’t take Axel by surprise that he was angry but it irked him that after everything Mulder had achieved at the FBI... with the X-files, that he would throw it all to the wind.. that he’d stop caring. And maybe that made him naive... not knowing exactly what they had been through to get to this point, but Axel felt the strength of Mulder’s convictions in those files, in the stories people told and to see the man before him not sure of those anymore, sucked.

_“Her DNA is what they want from her. The changes that happened, are providing a new way of looking at human - technological integration. I’m going to have to look at her latest physical and blood work but I believe that her body and DNA will allow them to bypass any problems with in utero integration.”_

Mulder’s heartbeat quickened. Breath squeezing painfully in his lungs. They had been through this before... in Antarctica. 

_“They’re going to use her as an incubator?”_Axel nodded. 

The prospect sent a chill down his spine but it was the clearest motive that Myriad would have to want to take her. 

_“For the most part but eventually, they will be able to take a patent of her DNA and biological process and produce new beings via a 3D type printer... which unfortunately means that once they have developed that patent, they won’t have a need for her anymore...” _

Mulder knew what Axel had meant without the need for him to say anything. Once they were done with Scully she would be disposable and better for them dead than not. He felt the back of his eyes twitch with a wanting build up of tears but knew this was neither the time nor place. Just as he was about to speak the phone on his desk rang.

_ “Mulder..... Okay. Thank you. I’m on my way.”_

Mulder sprang from his seat before the phone had reconnected with its cradle. 

_“Trace & DNA have something for us.”_

Axel bounded after Mulder who was already by the door. At least he was saying “us”…

* * *

Mulder squinted his eyes above the microscope, careful not to get his eyelashes in view; Scully had showed him after he had asked what those black squiggly things were once when he’d been looking at something she had wanted him to see. She had laughed and he’d thought it magical. She’d then helped him position his eyes so that he could see what he was supposed to without his eye leashes getting in the way. 

_“what am I looking at here?”_

Mulder moved away from the scope and looked at the lab tech who had summoned him. 

_“Essentially they are epithelial cells. They are found in our skin, among other places and tend to be left as trace when we touch or come into contact with things. I found these cells on the cloth from the stairwell... the one presumably used to gag Dr. Scully..” _

Axel looked in the microscope at the cells.. he was no doctor or scientist but had enough knowledge to know the basics. 

_“Were you able to pull a DNA profile?” _

Mulder looked from the tech to Axel. He hadn’t even thought to ask about DNA... that had always been Scully’s domain; she’d always been on top of all the medical/ science stuff. Before she’d come along, he’d done his best to gain some knowledge about that kind of thing but as soon as she’d become his partner, she always made sure he understood everything and had whatever they needed for their case already on the go without his prompting. The tech nodded and handed Axel the print out from the folder In his arms.. Axel studied it for a moment and handed it to Mulder. 

_“It’s Agent Scully’s DNA, which we suspected it would be... but I don’t think you would have pulled agent Mulder away from his work if you hadn’t found something we could use..”_

The tech swallowed thickly at Axel’s tone but nodded his agreement. 

_“No sir, we did find something that will be useful to you.”_

He motioned to the computer screen on the bench across the room. Mulder and Axel gathered over by the screen and watched as the screen changed to show a different DNA profile; and this one stood out to Mulder.

_“What’s that there?”_

Mulder pointed to a small abnormal looking branch on the profile. He may not be a Doctor or a scientist but he did know what a sequence was meant to look like... and this wasn’t normal. 

_“That... agent Mulder is how we might be able to track whoever took Dr. Scully. It’s almost like a set of coordinates built into a line of DNA.. a tracking system of sorts. It’s been physically coded into the DNA as a way of identifying and tracking whoever has this in them.”_

Axel frowned.. this was new territory even for him. 

_“It seems they’ve stepped up their techniques since I last dealt with them. They were more rudimentary in my time.. they were all chips in your neck and ankle monitors.”_

Mulder studied the screen. His mind trying to pull together the threads and trying to weave a plausible story for what he was seeing. 

_“This is impossible though right? This kind of biological engineering? No one can code a tracking system into someone’s DNA.”_

Axel could feel both Mulder curiosity and wonderment at what he was witnessing. 

_“That’s what Myriad does. They are decades ahead of trusted science. They push the boundaries of what should and can be, no matter the cost. I don’t know where the ideas or technology comes from but it’s here.. the only upside to this is that it could lead us to Scully.... how do we track it?”_

The tech swivelled on his chair to face both men, his eyes pleading for understanding.

_“That’s where we’ve become a little stuck. While we can track it, we need to be with in a certain distance for it to register... and the equipment we need is military grade…”_

Mulder clenched his fist at his side.. The damn military... one of his biggest hurdles he’d always face when investigating anything... and this time would be worse because he held no station. This would have to be official through and through. Axel could see the cogs in Mulder’s mind turning, and if he knew anything it would be about how they were going to get the military to cooperate with them. 

_“It’s going to be a tall order to get the military to give up their equipment.”_

Mulder nodded at Axel’s words. 

_“Yeah.. they’ve always been a thorn in my side but this time, it will have to be by regs... but first I need you to find out who I am tracking.. I wanna know name, age, where they are from... everything... call my cell when you’ve got something.”_

The tech nodded and moved off to do as he was asked but was stopped by Axel. 

_“I’m also going to need a full profile of Dr. Scully’s DNA. When you have it send them directly to me or Agent Mulder. No one else sees it, do you understand?”_

The tech nodded curtly. _“Yes sir.”_

Mulder turned to Axel and looked at him curiously. He could almost see himself in the man. The suspicions... trusting no one but those he chose to.. it sat heavy on his shoulders, knowing what those feelings and thoughts were going to end up doing to Axel. He had experienced them first hand and hoped that things had indeed changed... 

_“If I’m right about why they want Dr. Scully, we don’t want anyone outside knowing what we know. It will put her in more danger. Which leaves us? What’s our next step?”_

Mulder clenched his teeth painfully.. _“We pray that Skinner’s got the muscle to get the military to help us..”_

Axel knew it was grim but had to hold onto some form of hope that they could find these people and Scully before it was too late. Mulder led him out of the lab and into an elevator across the corridor, stepping onto it as it’s doors opened. The pair stood in silence as they began their journey, but Mulder could feel Axel biting his tongue, a question he wanted to ask lingering there.. 

_“Just ask me what you wanna know..”_

Axel swallowed. Had he really been that obvious? He hadn’t thought so and maybe he hadn’t; this was Agent Fox Mulder, he was considered one of the best profilers that ever graced the bureau. 

_“How does an Oxford educated, master of psychology become a basement dweller?”_

Mulder cocked an eyebrow, curious as to how Axel hadn’t heard the story... it was like Origins of a super hero, the back story that told of sadness and terror and a man lost into obscurity. 

_“My sister was abducted by aliens... didn’t you read the file?”_

Axel hadn’t expected the bluntness of his answer but appreciated his honest and forthcoming on the subject. 

_“Yes I read the file... but I’d be an idiot to assume that a few lines in a dossier told the whole story of one man’s life... I have too much respect for you and the work you’ve done to be so trivial.”_

Mulder chuckled, watching the numbered floors tick by until the doors slid open. The pair stepped out into another corridor and kept walking towards their destination; Skinner’s office.

_“Respect isn’t something that’s associated with me or the work I’ve done. As I told you, I became a joke... a story to be told around the water cooler. They used to tell stories about me at the academy... Spooky Mulder... so obsessed with his sisters disappearance that he’s convinced that the world is full of aliens and paranormal occurrences, that he can’t see the forest through the trees.”_

Axel could have stopped dead at Mulder’s words. He knew Mulder was stressed and that his primary focus right now was finding Scully but to hear him devalue the work he’d done for so many years, hit Axel hard. He looked up to Mulder; took inspiration from the hardships he faced and conquered... took solace in the strength of his convictions, in his need for the truth. 

_“That’s the thing about me, I’m not a sheep, I walk my own path... and while I have only just met you, having read all the X-Files, case reports and field notes, I can form my own opinion that people weren’t ready for the truths you were seeking and that you were so willing to put everything on the line, is worthy of respect... if not for the path you forged for people like me... then for your ability in being a thorn in the bad guys side.”_

It’s seemed to Mulder that he’d become jaded about his own life’s work. It has festered into a melting pot of other peoples opinions and he’d let them sink into his own thought patterns. It was refreshing to hear he’d at least impacted one person... Axel was starting to grow on him; he’d never tell him that though. He had to keep an air of mystery about him; after all he was Fox “Spooky” Mulder. So as they arrived at Skinner’s office, all Mulder could do was look at the man, a sincerity in his eyes, hoping he’d understand what he was trying to convey; a thank you of sorts. 

_“Let’s hope I’m still a thorn in the side.”_

* * *

The sun cast a soft glow over Mulder’s face as she looked at him. It never ceased to amaze her how perfect she found him; even as he got older. Scully propped herself up on an elbow to take in the masterpiece before her. He smiled up at her as he lay on the blanket they’d packed in the car earlier that day. His eyes sparkled and reflected the sun as pure as glass. In that moment she felt the most content she’d ever felt. It was a simple moment; both of them sprawled on a blanket on a grassy hill in the park. 

Mulder had kissed her then. 

Her eyes fluttered closed as the warmth of his lips melted into hers and he breathed her in like his favourite smell and she was. He was hers as well. As often as she could get away with it, he’d found her wearing his shirts, laying on his pillow seconds after he’d vacated the position and her body as close to his that she could manage. Scully knew he didn’t mind and thought he’d feel slighted if she’d stopped any of those actions. Which is what she felt a little as he pulled back, his soft lips parting from hers. 

She opened her eyes slowly to peer down at him, a sigh bubbling up from within her. It caught in her throat as her eyes adjusted to the sight before her.. Mulder was on his back, blood bubbling from a gaping wound in his neck, his gargling breaths meeting his eyes, there brightness dimming. 

Scully sprang up, clamping her hands over the wound. 

_“Mulder?... oh my god... hold on Mulder..”_

The blood spilled through her fingers, it’s heat matching the tears she could feel on her cheeks. Mulder looked up at her, his pale face freezing in place... and he began to laugh; bloodied teeth greeting her. Scully’s heart constricted. She didn’t understand. His laughter got louder and louder and the world around Scully began to spin, her vision pinpricking until it wasn’t.. her eyes slamming open, a bright light above her, piercing her vision. She was frozen. The commands she was giving her limbs going unnoticed but she soon realised that was because she was strapped to a bed by her chest, arms and legs; the only movement she could manage was to turn her head slightly to either side.. it was then she clocked what was going on. She struggled against the restraints, hot tears still rolling down her cheeks…

_“I can’t help you.. Please let me go.”_

A door in the distance swung open and an unfamiliar face appeared above hers; Dr Alton Marcus.

_“Oh on the contrary Ms Scully. I believe you can.”_


End file.
